Building material.



A. P. WHITE.

BUILDNG MATERIAL.

AFPLICATION FILED AUG. '7, 1911.

Patented Jan. 7, 1913.

2 SHEETS-SHEET l.

A. P. WHITE.

BUILDING MATERIAL. APPLICATION IILBD AUG. 7, 1911.

SHEET 2.

Patented J an. 7

2 SHEETS- UNITED sTATEs ALEXANDER P. WHITE-0F- CALDWELL, NEW JERSEY.

EUILIJING.v MATERIAL.

Specieation of Letters Patent.

lPatented J an. '7, 1913.

v.Applimi'mm med August 7, 1911.' serial 1ro. `642,842.

To all 'Lch-om t mag/concern.' v

Be it known that I, ALEXANDER P. WHITE, a citizen of the United States,-residing in Caldwell, county of Essex, StateA of New 5 Jersey, have invented a .new Iand useful Im# n provement inBuilding Material.

My invention relates to a new material suitable 'for different uses in building construction, more particularly for lathing, and for forming walls, floors, partitions and other structural parts. v

The ob'ect is .to simplify, improve. and cheapen such construction, by roviding a new and `composite material w ich .can be formed or produced'- in certain shapes, easily transported and readily adapted .to be put in position without special skill.

Briefly stated, it consists in elfecting a combination of artificial .stone, paper and metal to make certain st'ructural parts.

The present application is in part related to my pending application, filed April 8, 1910, Serial Number 554,168.

In the several illustrations which are a part of this specification, I show different forms useful in building construction, in

which the stone metal and paper can be combine f l Like reference letters in different figures refer to corresponding parts.

sition, B, to the main metallic members, and C,`to minor metallic members.

Figure 1 shows in combination with the paper and stonea main metalli-c member B adapted to serve as reinforcement for concrete. ,C represents a metallic rod used as a brace. .'Fig. 2 shows the main member B' in the form of a flanged channel, with rods C passing through fholes in the channel above the flanges. Fig. 3 shows merely a different form of brace C. Fig. 4 shows still another form of brace C..y Fig. 5 shows the channel members A leftV open at their flanged base, the groove being filled. with concrete, illustrating how the groove may be used when not covered by the composite material. Fig. 6 showsthe design represented by Fig. 3 resting on the flanges of I beams, ready for the concrete to be poured in to form a floor. Fig. 7 shows still another design in which the reinforcing member B extends beyond both surfaces ofthe stone` and paper portion. Fig. 8 shows a form particularly adapted for lathing the metallic elementsbeing relatively smaller A, refers to the stone and paper compo- `than those shown in other igures,'and consistingof rods of steel. 4 The letter Din this ii'gure represents plaster as applied.

VMetallic fabrics, formed by weaving and interlocking wires, and by slitting sheet metal Aand drawing apart ,the slitted por-4 tions, are now extensively used for lathing, but 1n these articles, it is diilcult to dispose or distribute the metal, so as to obtain the greatest 'efliciency meshes which will retain the plaster, it is necessary `to placethe strands closetogether and, on this account, it is not practical -to make the strands thick and heavy, else the fabric will be costly and difficult to manipulate. When, however, the strands are of small diameter the fabric is `not sti' and .the strands out 'the plaster, allowing much of' it to glo Abehind thelath, andcausing waste. fl erefore, great care in its a plication is necessary. Also on account oi) the resilient character of these'ni-etallicfabrics,- precaution is required to prevent them throwing olf the plaster in one place, when the pressure of the trowel is applied in another place. Moreover, .them-etal of the expanded sheet and woven wire fabrics is liable to rust and this. fact constitutes a serious objection; Still, because of the negligible contraction and'A expansion of steel, and, because of its non-inflammable character, it y\is greatly preferred for lathing, to wood which warps and twists as it absorbs moisture. Plasterboards', made by formin -plaster in slabs, are also extensively use These are heavy and fragile, and diilicult4 andco'stly, t9 transport, and they are not desirable for high class construction.' When placed in positlon they are covered with plaster but this covering is simply a finish. The plasterboard. itself constituting the actua wall body, the coating is` liable to crack and spale. When, however, the substantial portion of the wall is formed in place, by applying plaster to lathing, the wall is method 1s preferred in high class construction. The coeiiicient of contractionand expansion of steel and ordinary plaster compounds being about the same, steel is highly desirable for reinforcement, but, as already noted, when the close strands are made heavy enough, to become factors of strength,-

it is costly. c c

My invention overcomes the objectionsset forth. It provides a means of producing practically homogeneous, and thisc5 In ,order to provide a homogeneous wall body that allows an economical distribution of the metal, to supply the desired reinforcing element in substantial weight or size, and,`at the same time, it safeguards the metal from rust. This result is achieved at a cost'materially less than the costof any thing now used for the same purpose.

In carrying out the invention, to produce a form for lathing, I select rods of metal, preferably steel of suitable thickness, say 3/16 of an inch in diameter. I also select two sheets of strong paper of suitable porosity, say a little more than 1/64 -of an inch in thickness. In one ofthe sheets, I form grooves or channels, say 3 inches apart. and which grooves or channels produce stilfening ribs along the fibrous body sheet. I imL merse, soak or otherwise treat the paper sheets, in a liquid form of artificial stone, thus to combine the stone and paper by impregnation. I then place the sheet containing the rib-forming grooves on the bed plate of a` press, the bed plate having grooves coinciding with the grooves in the paper. I next place the reinforcing metallic rods or wires in the grooves, bring'the second sheet into position on the grooved sheet, and subject them to pressure. will cause them to combine. It is desirable to make the grooves in the paper somewhat larger than the metal rods. The space which the metal does not occupy will then be filled with the stone compound, with the result of forming a rib reinforcement of stone and metal, giving increased protection to the metal .and greatly stiffening the product. Stilfness is a highly desirable feature in all such materials. It is obvious that the'compressing operation must be performed before the liquid form of stone sets or dries,'

and-that it is possible to eiect the union`of the impregnated sheets by rotary mechamism-that is to say, by passing them through rolls having grooves to accommodate themetal rods or wires. It is also-obvious that the wires may be made .to cross one another in different directions, as at right angles, and that the met-al may be formed in different shapes according to the purpose for which the product is designed.

From the foregoing description, it will be observed that the stone-treatment of the fibrous body gives stiffness and strength thereto, and by reason of the stone compo-r sition impregnating the said brous body, the walls ofthe ribs of such body inherently include stone reinforcementl thereof, which may be increased or diminished as above indicated, according to the amount of stone composition which may be permitted 'to surround the ribs and fill into the grooves thereof.

A solution for forming the artificial stone consists of silicate of soda, infusorialearth The artificial stone and oXid ofzinc. I have taken the ordinary silicate of soda of a syrupy consistency and diluted it with an equal quantity of water. To this I have added enough infusorial earth to make the solution of the consistency of ordinary mucilage, and then added from two to live per cent. of oxid of zinc. Finely ground sand or Portland cement may be substituted, in vwhole or in part, for the infusorial earth. The zinc is for the purpose of giving toughness to theinished productand it seems to hasten solidication. After effecting t-he combination of the metal, the paper and the stone, as already described, I treat the product in a bath of calcium chlorid for the purpose of rendering the stone compound insoluble, but I do not regard this treatment absolutely necessary. It is desirable to allow the impregnated paper to become at least partially dry, before bringing it into contact with the chlorid reagent and to wash the product by passing it through water after the chlorid treatment.`

From the description herein, it is evident that the metal parts lie between what was `previously .two separate sheets of paper.

Thefartiicial stone-solution, by going into the paper, causes the sheets particularly when under pressure to lose their identity, producing a body that has new character: istics. I have found it is practically impossible to separate the sheets when the opera- Ition is properly carried out, but, if by reason of imperfect practice, there develop any tendency to break, the break will occur in the seam, because the engagement of the `fibers there, is not so extensive as in the body of the sheets. I provide for such contingency, as well as for other considerations, which are presently to be explained, by perforating the lathing material. By allowing the plaster to vgo through the body of the-lath, the I,rfora-tions will prevent absolutely any tendency to split. It is obviously important to bring the plaster into prac-tically direct engagement withthe reinforce ribs, and Ieffect this result, by making perforations adjacent the ribs, thus in effect establishing a holding engagement between the plaster and the metal, regardless of the paper and stone element. This result is facilitated by the tendency ,of the plaster to curl as it is pushed through the holes. It will be understood'that I do not mean that it is necessary to make the perfor-ations so close to the metal as to necessitate the stripping away of the composite material from the metal and actually exposing the metal. On the contrary it is desirable always to leave the metal protected.

Reference has hereinbefore been made to the importance of making the wall body as nearly homogeneous as practical. In short it is important to make the plaster the substantial part of the Wall., It is well knoyvn that when plaster is applied to a solid body or to a flat even surface., the resultis not as structure.

satisfactory as when |it is applied to a broken and somewhat yielding substance.

Therefore, it is highly desirable to break up the body of the material ofthe invention.

with numerous perforations, although plaster will readily stick to it Without the aid of the holes. The perforations of course weaken the lathing, but it willbe found that the material produced by combining the paper, stone and metal, as described, will be, when .even as much as half of the body isthus cutaway, still much stiffer than any Aknown form of metallic lath, the thickness,

yof the composite body being about the same as the diameter of the wire commonly used to form Wire lath fabrics.

In the several illustrations, I have shown how'the composite body formed of the stone and paper may be combined with metal` tov i serve for'other structural purposes.

Many efforts have been made toind a suitable and economical substitutefor. the

wooden forms or molds, used in the installatlon of concrete floors.

first to put in place, -a false wooden -floor to close the space between steel Iv beams. Steel rods,bars and steel in other shapes to pro'- vide for tensile stresses, are then placed on the Woodenforms and the concrete: poured over them, the vWoodwork being removed after the concrete has set and hardened. In

Fig. 1 I show how the `tension members may be combined with ,the composite material Y and no other form will be required to hold the concrete. In thisv figure A represents the paper and stone, B the tension member and' C a cross rod of metal to brace thecomposite By Fig. 6 Iillustrate how the article of vist.

y Especially when the material is to be -used in connection withl the installation of concrete, I prefer to carry the treatment another'step `farther, by immersing the article in a solution of the same character described above, but preferably not so thick. The effect of this treatment is to superimpose on the stone impregnated paper, a coating of pure artificial stone. It will strengthen the article but lessen the flexibility which is a characteristicof the product. A

I have designated paper as a material for combining With artificial stone, because it is the cheapest and most desirable -form of When of suit-A able quality it has capacity .t0 absorb fluids fibrous material available.

and paper is easily manipulated. For that reason I prefer paper but I do not. desire to lilnit the invention to it,1since there are other fibrous materials that can: be substituted. Of'the paper products, sheets ofordinary unbleached Wood pulp are Well adapted for my purpose. Other compounds, too, besides the one I have named, are available for v' understood to include the Wellknown cementitious 'substances which on drying or setting change from a plastic state into a hard crystalline body havingqualities of stone.

. In certain claims of this specification I Ahave claimed a rib of stone reinforced with a rod of met-al but I- do not desire to be une derstood to mean that the major portion as would be shown in cross section mustl be stone. The greater portion ofthe cross sectional area of the ribs may be either metal or stone and the metal may be any desired shape in cross section.

'What' I claim and desire. to secure yLetters Patent A is:. 1 l 1. As an article of manufacture, a strucforming the artificial stone, this term being tural element for buildings and the like comprising spaced metallic members, anda ribbed body of fibrous material in sheet form supporting said members, thebrous l material containing a permeant of artificial stone.

2. As an article of manufacture, a structur`al element for buildings andthe like comprising spaced metallic' members, and a vribbed body. of fibrous material in sheet form su porting4 said members, some atv least of t cribs having a filling of artificial stone.

^ 3. As an article of manufacture, a structural element for buildings and the like, comprising a body of fibrous material in sheet form, having grooves therein forming ribs, and metallic rods in said grooves, the

brous'material lhaving a permea'nt of artia ficial stone. l

4. YAs an article of manufacture, a structural element forbuildings and the like, comprising -a body of fibrous material in sheet form, the' said b'ody havi'ng a rib rein forced by artificial stone and by a rod of metal.

5.4 As an article of manufacture, a struc-v tural element for buildings and the like, comprising a body of fibrous .material in sheet form containing a ermeant of arti'- icial stone, .the said body aving a rib reinyforced by artificial stone and by a rod of metal;

6.v As an article of'manufact-ure, a structural element for buildings and the like,-

comprising spaced metallic members and ibrousmaterial in sheet orm supporting said members and having its surface broken With perforations, both sides of said sheet material being coated with a layer of artiicial stone to strengthening the structure to adapt it for supporting the metal, the layer on one side bemg connected with the layer on the opposite side by extensions of artificial 10 stone through the said perforations, thus adapting the article to resist the swelling and warping effect of moisture When plaster lsignature in the presence of two Witnesses. 15

ALEXANDER P. WHITE.

Witnesses:

J. B. DE WOLF,

M. GREENLEES. 

